Support your scene!

It’s always tempting to go and see bands who are further up the chain – see the poster above, for the Delain/Trillium/Halcyon Way show that I’ll be going to on Sunday night – but what about bands who aren’t at the festival/releasing albums/career musician stage that Delain are at? In this age of non-existent record sales, established labels being shut down by corporate parents and a worrying sense that rock is being marginalised ever further, shouldn’t we as music fans be taking a leaf from the punk and hardcore scenes are supporting our bands in a direct way?

I apologise if you’re reading this and I’m teaching you to suck eggs – I know that a great many music fans are already all too cognizant that it’s more difficult than ever for bands to build a career and make a living from playing music and are doing their part to directly support the music that they love. It’s the other guys that I’m talking to.

And I recognize that it’s very easy for me to blog about this stuff and then do nothing myself to try to make a difference. To which end – I propose a strategy, a plan for moving forward, if you will?

Every time that I go to see a more established band from now on, I’m going to try to balance that reasonably easy option out by going to see unsigned and local bands who really do need the support at this nascent stage.

To which end, meet the first band that I intend to go and see live – Manchester’s Gone Til Winter, who are due to play at the Dove & Rainbow in Sheffield on Friday 11th May with Awaker in support. I’ve been listening to and enjoying their stuff after seeing them linked on Spotify. Their website, linked above, has an embedded music player so that you can make up your own mind.